Shire counting on house numbers fix

The Derby West Kimberley Shire says a lack of street numbers is causing problems for emergency services who cannot find residents quickly.

Shire president Elsia Archer says Derby houses are especially hard to locate because numbers have either fallen off or been removed.

Ms Archer says police and ambulance services are losing time trying to find people in an emergency.

She says the shire has asked the Department of Housing to help.

"The shire has been trying to do something but it's not that simple ... I know one of the staff were talking to Homeswest to see if they could number their places because there's mostly Homeswest homes in town so ... share the burden sort of thing," she said.

The Department of Housing says it has begun addressing the situation by attaching reflective metal numbers to houses in Derby.

The department's Steve Parry says work on Baobab Street, Barnett Way and McGovern Way is complete and remaining streets will follow shortly.

Mr Parry says the department will pay the fees to replace numbers on all 529 state-owned houses in the town.